Sinixt Nation sends letter to the Canadian Forces Provost Marshal (CFPM)

From: Sinixt Nation

Date: July 25thth 2013

 

To: Canadian Forces Provost Marshal (CFPM)

2200 Walkley Road

Ottawa, ON, K1A 0K2

Telephone: (613) 949-1000

Fax: (613) 949-1637

 

Background:

We, the association of Sinixt human-beings known as the Sinixt Nation have continuously lived, occupied and used our unceded traditional territory (Sinixt territory*) for at least the last 3000 years to the present in the area contemporarily called the “Columbia River Basin in British Columbia, Canada” as is verified by the work of archaeological and ethnographical professionals, local historical professionals, and through the oral stories of Sinixt human beings continuing to live on or near traditional Sinixt territory. *(See: http://www.sinixtnation.org/content/sinixt-territory )

 

Sinixt Nation is a recognized First Nation in British Columbia and is recognized as such by various individuals and organizations including but not limited to ex-BC Premier Glen Clark, ex-MP Corkie Evans, BC Ministry of Forests and BC Parks, BC School District 20, BC MLA Katherine Conroy, BC MLA Michelle Mungall, Sophie Pierre acting as Ktunaxa Nation Council Chief and now acting as the BC Treaty Commissioner, Katherine Teneese as a Ktunaxa Nation Council representative, Clarence Louie acting as the Osoyoos Indian Band Chief. (Evidence available upon request)

 

Sinixt territory is depicted on many historical maps and was surveyed at least five times. Twice by George Anthony Dawson in 1884 & 1892, by James Teit in 1909, by Franz Boas 1928, by Verne Ray in 1935. (See: maps of Sinixt territory at http://www.sinixtnation.org/content/maps

Sinixt Nation is a transborder First Nation whos territory was divided by the Canada/US International Boundary. Sinixt human beings were historically subjected to a legislated genocidal campaign by Canada and BC to keep them out of their traditional lands that culminated in the declaration of the Sinixt/Arrow Lakes Indian Band being declared extinct in 1956 by Canada. This statement is verified by various documents, government records, the testimonies of many Sinixt human-beings including but not limited to; the the archived documents of the Journals of the BC Legislature, the archived colonial correspondance documents of the first Governor of the Province of British Columbia James Douglas, the testimonies of Eva Adolph Orr, the testimonies of Vance Robert Campbell Sr., the testimonies of Robert Watt, and the testimonies of Marilyn James. (See: http://sinixtnation.org other evidence available upon request)

 

Sinixt Nation has taken many avenues to exercise our lawful rights and interests to Sinixt territory in the past including but not limited to;

  1. filing a BC Supreme Court aboriginal land claim on behalf of nearly 300 Sinixt people in 2008,

  2. filing the Robert Watt case in the Federal Court of Canada Trial Division Registry No. T-1831-06, regarding our right to travel freely within our own territory unmolested,

  3. trying to re-instate members through the Ministry of Indian Affairs on multiple occassions,

  4. attempting to protect cultural interests by defending our rights to our sacred lands on slhu7kin/Perry Ridge in the area known as the Slocan Valley BC.

  5. occupying and using our ancient village site (nkwieo-xten) in what is known as Vallican BC for the last 28 years,

  6. being actively engaged in our responsibilities to our cultural laws and ways, including but not limited to performing sweatlodge ceremonies, constructing traditional pithouse shelters, constructing the smum iem (women's) council house, performing winterdance ceremonies, giveaways, hunting, fishing, gathering plants and medicines.

  7. engaging with some BC Ministries in consultations.

  8. repatriating 64 ancestral remains from various public and private collections including but not limited to The Royal British Columbia Museum. The said repatriations were reburied by Sinixt Nation with Sinixt cultural and religious ceremonies, some performed by our ll-mix-m (Headman) and Sinixt clanmothers and recognized spiritual leaders such as but not limited to haha-ak'n (Eva Adolph Orr, mother of Vance Robert Campbell Sr.), ll-mix-m Francis Romero, squl pulxw (Alvina Lum, mother of Marilyn James).

  9. giving testimony to the United Nations special Repatouer on indigenous rights in Albequerque, Sarcee (Alberta), Seattle, and New York.

 

The Sinixt Nation by continuing to actively pursue our cultural and religious ways are engaged in a process that requires us to protect our sacred water and ancestral sites, including areas that are essential to maintaining our religious and cultural pratices. All the said avenues we have taken have all been to no avail, and human-beings in our group are now being deprived of our intrinsic rights as a result of the Canadian extinction status of the Arrow Lakes Indian Band as we have no avenue that we are aware of to present ourselves to Her Majesty the Queen in Right of Canada, The Crown, and other groups in association with Canada other than by presenting ourselves as human-beings according to Sinixt laws and conventional international law.

 

Sinixt Nation submitted a Cease and Desist Order to BCTS which was recieved by fax and email on May 10th 2013 and recieved no response from BCTS regarding the said order. On June 10th 2013 Sinixt served a second Cease and Desist Order to BCTS representing Her Majesty the Queen in Right of Canada to stop treating our group inhumanely and to stop causing mental harm to members of our group. This said order of June 10th 2013 was recieved by BCTS by fax, email and served to two BCTS employees.

 

We established a cultural encampment on slhu7kin/Perry Ridge to assist Sinixt in their cultural and religious developments including but not limited to berry-picking, hunting, cultural and religious fasts and ceremonies, preserving food, and to exercise and protect our intrinsic rights and cultural ways.

(See: http://www.sinixtnation.org)

 

On July 16th 2013 “Occupants of Sinixt Nation” recieved a Trespass Notice on Crown Land Order from BC MFLNRO officers from the compliance and enforcement Branch who were accompanied by two RCMP officers, one identified as Sgt. Mike Wicentowich of Nakusp BC.

(See: http://www.sinixtnation.org/content/sinixt-nation-receives-notice-trespass-crown-land-orders )

 

Sinixt Nation responded to the said Trespass Order but only Marilyn James recieved correspondence from the BCMFLNRO stating that the Trespass Order stood under the BC Lands Act. We made the Province of British Columbia and the BCMFLNRO aware of Her Majesty's obligations to conventional international law and of some of our concerns and matters in the said response.

 

The matriarch and appointed spokesperson for Sinixt Nation, Marilyn James, holds aboriginal status in Canada and is registered in the United States as an Arrow Lakes Indian on the Confederated Tribes of Colville Reservation. Marilyn has a Masters in Education and continues to work with Selkirk College, BC School Districts 8, 10, 19, & 20 regarding aboriginal, cultural and language programs within Sinixt territory, Hamilton College (New York), and Gonzaga University.

(See: Affidavit of Marilyn James #1 and #2 at: http://www.sinixtnation.org/content/documents )

 

Presently the Sinixt Nation and human-beings in association with our group are being harassed and/or threatened within Sinixt territory and within our hunting grounds according to the Royal Proclamation of 1763 by various persons including but not limited to the “RCMP and their security personnel”, “Ministry of Forests, Lands, and Natural Resource Operations”, and “British Columbia Timber Sales.”

 

All evidence submitted to Canadian courts has never been tested by the said courts and at every juncture the courts refuse the evidence we provide and therefore no one is actually looking at the evidence we are presenting concerning our matters.

(See: http://www.sinixtnation.org/content/documents)

 

Sinixt Nation believes that the said evidence proves the violations by Her Majesty the Queen in Right of Canada and it's superiors, officers, other agents.

 

We also believe that the current conditions of life being inflicted upon our group by Her Majesty the Queen in Right of Canada is depriving our group to our cultural rights by acts we believe to be genocide and to be highly insedious in nature.

 

Sinixt Nation is aware of one possible avenue left for Sinixt Nation is to pursue our matter concerning human rights violations within Canada is to file our evidence with the Special International Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court (ICC) in the Hague and seek international internvention through the ICC. We are aware that Her Majesty may want to prevent this from happening and we wish for Her Majesty to respect our rights.

 

Questions

  1. Is the CFPM obligated to conventional international law?

  2. Is the CFPM obligated to the Royal Proclamation of 1763?

  3. Does the Royal Proclamation of 1763 apply to Canadian security and police?

  4. Who enforces conventional international law in Canada according to the Crimes Against Humanity and War Crimes Act (2000) and the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court?

  5. Is the CFPM able to provide the name of the “superior” who gave orders to RCMP Insp. Nick Romanchuk of the Kootenay Boundary RCMP to send RCMP officers including but not limited to Sgt. MICHAEL WICENTOWICH, Cpl. R. FELHER, Cst. BILL MCKENNA to the Sinixt Nation cultural encampment on slhu7kin/”Perry Ridge” within unceded Sinixt Nation Territory on July 17 2013?

  6. Sgt. MICHAEL WICENTOWICH threatened to charge Sinixt human beings with “mischief” under the Criminal Code for defending our human rights and lands, and told occupants of the said encampment that the RCMP do not have a mandate to enforce conventional international law and that the Crimes Against Humanity and War Crimes Act was not applicable. We believe his statements to be false. Can the CFPM verify his claims and/or gives us information applicable to our matter and the RCMP's obligations to conventional international law?

  7. We believe the Sinixt extinction status deprives Sinixt human-beings of our cultural rights and prevents Sinixt from travelling freely within Sinixt territory. Is the CFPM in a position to protect the cultural rights of the human-beings in association with Sinixt Nation?

 

Requirements

 

Sinixt Nation requiresthe CFPM to provide us with answers to the questions raised in this letter (to the best of your abilities) and we also require an immediate written response to this letter by email via the internet sent to info@sinixtnation.org and forwarded to marilynrjames@hotmail.com as our matter is of the most serious crimes of international concern.

 

We also require the CFPM to advise us on how to direct his authority to stop these said infringements of Sinixt human-being's entitled rights according to these following laws:

 

  • United Nations Convention on Social, Economic, and Cultural Rights (UN-CSECR)

  • United Nations Convention on Civil and Political Rights

  • United Nations Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide

  • The Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court

  • The Crimes Against Humanity and War Crimes Act of Canada.

 

We require a superior to address this issue on a level that can ensure our rights as Sinixt human-beings will not continue to be violated by Her Majesty the Queen in Right of Canada and any others.

 

All forms and other information that can assist us with this matter is appreciated.

 

Please read more information and see evidence on our website at: http://www.sinixtnation.org. If you require any additional information or evidence please contact us immediately.

 

lim limt (thank you)

Sinixt Nation aka Arrow Lakes Indians

info@sinixtnation.org

phone: 250-226-6743 Sinixt ll-mix-m (headman/Chief) Vance Robert Campbell Sr.

Phone: 250-226-6726 Appointed Sinixt Spokesperson Marilyn James

 

Marilyn James

Signed on behalf of myself, Sinixt Nation, my family, my ancestors, all Sinixt descendants and the future generations of Sinixt human-beings.

 

ll-mix-m Vance Robert Campbell Sr.

Signed on behalf of myself, Robert Watt, my family, my ancestors, all Sinixt descendants and the future generations of Sinixt human-beings.